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Fifth Global Summit: South-to-South Cooperation — Enhancing Cross-Regional Collaboration

Publication Date:

21/12/2024

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Event Reports

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Cape TownDisinformationFifth Global SummitNational-Local CooperationSouth-to-South CooperationYouth Engagement

— 11 minutes reading time

Introduction

On 3 – 5 December 2024, the Strong Cities Network held its Fifth Global Summit in Cape Town (South Africa), bringing together more than 140 participants, including 60 mayors and governors, as well as city officials, practitioners and partners from more than 90 cities and 40 countries around the world. The Summit included mayoral conversations, thematic parallel sessions and tabletop exercises – providing city officials from diverse contexts with opportunities to share and learn from city-led innovations and approaches to prevent and respond to hate, extremism and polarisation, and maintain social cohesion amid global crises.

The Summit included a session on South-to-South Cooperation to discuss shared challenges facing cities in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, in particular, and opportunities for fostering cross-regional collaboration among mayors, governors and other local leaders, and local governments in these regions. The session provided a platform through which to share common challenges and good practices for addressing disinformation and online harms, ways to engage young people who are most vulnerable to radicalisation and recruitment by extremist groups to violence, and strategies for strengthening national-local cooperation in prevention and response to shared challenges of hate, extremism and polarisation.

Featured Speakers

• Ismail Rafeeq, Mayor of Fuvahmulah City (Maldives)
• Mohamed Maaitah, Mayor of Karak (Jordan)
• Joseph Dzuwa, Ministry of Local Government, Unity and Culture (Malawi)
• Priscilla Demana, General Manager for Community Services, Musina Municipality (South Africa)

Key Takeaways

• Disinformation poses a significant threat to communities worldwide, and South to South cooperation presents a valuable opportunity for local governments to share strategies and experiences in addressing this challenge. In many cities in the global South, disinformation often exploits existing social and political tensions.  To help address this challenge, local governments should promote media literacy by implementing programmes that educate the public, especially youth, on how to critically assess online content and identify disinformation. They should also look to collaborate with local influencers, as they can help amplify accurate information and act as positive agents of change. Lessons from successful initiatives in South Asia, where digital literacy campaigns have targeted schools and community groups, can inspire similar efforts in Africa and the Middle East.
  
  
• South-to-South cooperation provides a unique platform for local governments to exchange effective strategies for involving youth in the prevention of hate, extremism and polarisation. Across these regions, youth remain one of the most vulnerable demographics to radicalisation and recruitment by extremist groups to violence, making their inclusion in prevention efforts critical. Local governments can establish platforms to promote youth participation, such as youth forums and youth civic academies, to engage young people constructively and empower them to act as agents of resilience within their communities.
  
  
• Learning about successful initiatives from other regions can inspire and help others who are dealing with similar challenges. Local governments can significantly benefit from engaging in peer-to-peer learning and cross-regional partnerships, particularly within the framework of South-South collaboration. By participating in interactive knowledge exchanges such as workshops, webinars and study tours, local governments can share their experiences and solutions to common challenges. This approach not only empowers local governments by building their capacity to address challenges independently but also fosters innovation and adaptation through exposure to different approaches and technologies.

The Role of Local Governments in Addressing Mis/Disinformation and Online Harms

Participants agreed that disinformation poses a significant challenge to communities in the three regions, as it can incite violence and undermine trust in institutions. The spread of false information, often through social media, can exacerbate existing social tensions and create new divisions by promoting misinformation about ethnic, religious or political groups. The impact is particularly severe in regions where access to reliable information is already limited.

Rajiv Chaudhary, Councillor from Municipal Corporation of Delhi (India), emphasised the role of social media in spreading disinformation, which has fuelled hate crimes and public unrest across the region. He further highlighted the challenge of managing disinformation in a country with low literacy rates. In order to address this challenge, Delhi worked with civil society and fact-checking organisations to verify information circulating in the community, as well as to debunk false claims, especially during critical events like elections or health crises. The city also found that using arts and culture can help shape communities’ attitudes and behaviours, with movies, in particular, a powerful tool for shaping narratives.

Ismail Rafeeq, Mayor of Fuvahmulah City (Maldives), shared what his city is doing to combat disinformation. Fuvahmulah has integrated critical thinking and digital literacy into school curricula, fostering responsible social media use among youth. During the recent presidential elections, the Maldives faced a surge of politically-motivated rumours that raised community tensions. In response, the city organised community awareness programs to engage directly with residents and clarify the rumours. Additionally, the local government actively monitored and flagged misinformation on social media platforms, collaborating with local influencers and activists to amplify the factual information. Influencers play a major role in shaping public opinion in the Maldives, but unfortunately, sometimes unknowingly spread misinformation. Through direct engagement, the city ensured that influencers acted as positive agents of change instead of amplifiers of division.

Peter Odima, Minister for Housing and Urban Development from Busia County (Kenya), echoed the global challenge posed by social media, noting that current methods of dealing with mis/disinformation are largely reactive and often come after the damage has been done. He emphasised the need for proactive measures, including targeted programmes to teach young people responsible social media use and the inclusion of social media literacy in school curricula to help them identify fake news and critically assess online content. He also called for clear, enforceable laws to hold individuals accountable for creating and spreading misinformation, stressing that while freedom of speech is important, it should not come at the cost of societal harmony.

Eric Apelgren, Head of Department for International and Intergovernmental Relations, City of Durban (South Africa), discussed the challenge of the generational gap in social media literacy. He noted that many political and administrative leaders are not as adept at navigating social media platforms as the younger generation. This discrepancy limits their ability to respond promptly and effectively to emerging issues. He also highlighted the challenges posed by the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI), including deepfakes and AI-generated content, which make it increasingly difficult to discern truth from misinformation. He underscored the importance of training mayors, political leaders and government officials in social media literacy, so they are better able to understand how platforms work, and strategies used to spread disinformation and how to counter it effectively.

Participants agreed that local governments play a crucial role in combating the threat disinformation poses to community cohesion by implementing proactive measures such as promoting media literacy, engaging in community outreach and deploying counter-narratives. By fostering partnerships with local organisations, leveraging technology to monitor and counter false narratives and ensuring transparent communication, local governments can build resilience against disinformation and maintain social cohesion.

Youth Engagement

A key concern for cities in the South (and elsewhere) is how to meaningfully engage youth in the prevention of hate, extremism and polarisation, as young people are often both the most vulnerable to radicalisation and the most capable of driving positive change within their communities. There was broad consensus among participating city officials of the importance of investing in young people, empowering them with the skills and knowledge to recognise and counter extremist narratives to not only help prevent hate and violence but to also foster a sense of ownership and responsibility towards their communities.

Mohamed Maaitah, Mayor of Karak (Jordan), shared how his city has been actively engaging young people in the prevention of violent extremism through various initiatives. With Strong Cities’ support, Karak established a Local Prevention Network, which involves youth in conducting needs assessments in their communities and presenting their findings to policymakers. Additionally, the Youth Civic Action Academy empowers young Jordanians to take an active role in building social cohesion and preventing violence. This program includes sessions on civic responsibilities, media literacy and combating hate speech and misinformation. Karak has also used sports, arts and theatre, and initiatives like Yalla Netghayyar, to engage local communities, and work with children and young people, to foster a culture of peace and resilience. These efforts have been critical in ensuring that young people feel included and a valuable part of their community.

David Kuria, County Chief Officer for Housing and Urban Development, Nakuru County (Kenya), shared how the county navigated the June 2024 Gen Z Revolution; protests led by young Kenyans against a series of unpopular tax proposals. Nakuru County organised monthly Town Dialogues that brought together representatives from the County government, civil society and youth for dialogues aimed at providing accurate information to youth and fostering youth engagement in policy-making.

National – Local Cooperation

Gertrude Gamwera, Secretary General of the East African County and Local Governments Association (EACLGA) and Head of the Strong Cities East and Southern Africa (ESA) Regional Hub, emphasised the importance of aligning local policies with national frameworks to prevent hate, extremism and polarisation. Local governments are often the first to detect signs of social unrest and can implement immediate, context-specific interventions. However, they may lack the resources and broader strategic framework that national governments can provide. By working together, she said, local authorities can leverage national resources, expertise and policy support to address the root causes of hate and extremism that can lead to violence more effectively. Moreover, a united front between national and local governments sends communities a strong message of solidarity and commitment to social cohesion, helping to build public trust and resilience against those that are trying to divide communities.

Joseph Dzuwa from Malawi’s Ministry of Local Government, Unity and Culture,shared that Malawi has made significant strides in strengthening national-local cooperation with support from Strong Cities. Following initial meetings facilitated by the Network, Malawi developed a comprehensive strategy to ensure national policies and legal frameworks reflect local realities, including leveraging existing structures, such as the Peace and Unity Act. Malawi has also launched a revised decentralisation policy to empower cities with more control over planning and resources. The National Counterterrorism and Extremism Strategy and the National Peace Policy are being revised with the same goal, to empower cities to take a more active role in prevention of hate and extremism.

Cross-Regional Collaboration

Finally, the session discussed the benefits of South-to-South collaboration and sharing of knowledge, resources and good practices in prevention of hate, extremism and polarisation. This collaboration allows local governments to learn from each other’s experiences and strategies, adapting successful initiatives to their own unique challenges.

Priscilla Demana, General Manager for Community Services, Musina Municipality (South Africa), highlighted the challenges her town faces in the context of migration, given its location bordering Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique. A significant increase in undocumented migrants has placed pressure on Musina’s limited resources and has given rise to community tensions. Through a partnership with the City of Koboko (Uganda), facilitated by Strong Cities, Musina has been implementing a model that includes and encourages migrant leaders to participate in local committees, ensuring that migrants are active participants in resolving the challenges they face. This model, which could have relevance to cities facing similar challenges in other regions in the global South, further helps build relationships between migrant and hosting communities which in turn reduces tensions that can arise due to the competition over the limited resources.  

Next Steps

The Summit’s South-to-South Cooperation session reinforced the importance of collaboration and city-city exchange between cities across the Global South, from leveraging regional insights to the exchange of innovative approaches to shared challenges. The session also highlighted that while mis/disinformation, hate and extremism, and resource constraints continue to pose challenges at the local level for cities across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, city-to-city learning and the exchange of innovative approaches among local governments within and across regions offer a pathway to sustainable solutions. Strong Cities remains committed to supporting and catalysing city-led action to address these challenges through South-to-South Collaboration, its Regional Hubs and global events like the Fifth Global Summit. Next steps will include cross-regional webinars and identifying further opportunities to support city projects and partnerships through Strong Cities’ Technical Support Fund.

Further Resources

New Strong Cities policy briefs and other resources include:

• Managing Migration: City-Led Approaches for Being an Inclusive, Welcoming and Socially-Cohesive City, Strong Cities Network, December 2024
• Countering Hate Speech in Times of Crisis: Considerations for Mayors and Local Governments, Strong Cities Network, December 2024
• Creating Safe, Cohesive and Resilient Cities through Urban Planning & Design: Ten Considerations for Mayors and Local Governments, Strong Cities Network, December 2024
• City-Led Youth Engagement in Addressing Hate, Extremism and Polarisation: 10 Recommendations for Cities, Strong Cities Network, November 2024
• City-Led Prevention of Hate, Extremism and Polarisation: Leveraging Local Youth Councils, Strong Cities Network, November 2024
• National-Local Cooperation: A Pillar of City-Led Prevention of Hate, Extremism and Polarisation – A Practice Update, Strong Cities Network, December 2024
• A Guide for Cities: Preventing Hate, Extremism & Polarisation, Strong Cities Network, updated November 2024
• A Guide for Mayors: Preventing and Responding to Hate, Extremism & Polarisation, Strong Cities Network, updated September 2024
• A Guide for City-Led Response, Strong Cities Network, March 2024 (Updated October 2024)
• City Spotlights Library, Strong Cities Network

Donors & Partners

The Fifth Global Summit was made possible with generous support from the European Union, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Public Safety Canada, the US Department of State and the City of Cape Town. 

The views expressed in this session report do not necessarily reflect those of all Strong Cities Network members, the Management Unit or Summit sponsors and partners. 

Contact Information 

For more information about the Fifth Global Summit or the Strong Cities Network, please contact [email protected].

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